Resume

How Long Should I Expect to Spend on My Resume?

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I am often asked how long writing a resume should take. There are several ways to answer this question; the first one depends on whether you are prepared with all of your information before you sit down to write. And whether you are writing a private sector or federal resume—or both!

Here is what you need to have ready to prepare a strong resume before you sit down to write:

• A target job posting. Key words are essential. You’ll need to identify the key words of the postings or kind of job you are pursuing. If you are writing a resume for the private sector, you should assume that your resume will be “read” by Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) which will search for key words. If you are writing a federal resume, you should know that USAJOBS is not an ATS; however, Human Resources (HR) professionals will be reviewing your resume to ensure your experience as outlined in your resume matches the qualifications sought—and the best way to demonstrate that is through the use of key words.

• Your work history for the past 10 or so years. It never ceases to amaze me how many people do not accurately track their titles, employers, and month/year of employment. All employers want to know this and you need this information on hand before you start drafting your resume. Most employers do not need the specific start date (only month and year) but some federal job postings do request actual dates, in addition to month and year.

• Metrics related to your current job (and ideally the ones past too). Metrics give your work context and it is important to use them as often as possible. What is the dollar value of your budget? How many people do you supervise? How long are your projects? Any place you can include a number, you should; this will be a real differentiator in your resume. Again, numbers are something you should track throughout your career—it’s almost impossible to remember them over a long period of time.

• Achievements. It is not enough to include duties in your resume; employers want to know how you have added value / made a difference. Try to track your achievements over the course your career. It’s not enough to list your duties on your resume; you can differentiate yourself by demonstrating that you not only did your duties but that you did them well. Try to have at least 3-5 achievements for your current job (assuming you’ve been in it for a couple of years). Again, having achievements can make you stand out from other candidates who have essentially the same experience.

• Education information, along with professional certifications, awards, professional development, and other details. While all resumes need education (although skip your graduation date if you graduated more than 5 years ago) and professional certifications (CPA, PMP, PE, IT certifications, etc.), in most cases you should only include awards and professional development on a federal resume.

Only after you have gathered all of your relevant information, is it time to start writing. How long should that take? If you are writing a private sector resume, assume it will take you at least 4 to 6 hours (or more); if you are writing a federal resume, assume a minimum of 6 to 8 hours.

These timeframes are minimum and do not include time for editing and revision. Nor are they illustrative of how long it takes to prepare an executive or Senior Executive Service (SES) resume. And I always recommend that you walk away from your draft for at least a day so you can review it with fresh eyes.

Can You Write Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) by Tomorrow?

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Nearly every day I get a call from someone seeking help to prepare a set of Executive Core Qualifications (ECQ) as part of their Senior Executive Service (SES) package. Unfortunately, many people want their ECQs written in 3 days—sometimes less!

When I begin to ask them questions about whether they have a draft, are familiar with CCAR, or have thought about their stories, the answer is often no. To prepare a strong set of ECQs, you should expect to spend a significant amount of time: 1) identifying your examples, 2) writing, and 3) reviewing and editing.

  • Identifying ECQ examples: Before sitting down to write your ECQs, you should identify 10 or more examples / stories to use. Your stories must fit the competencies (Leading Change, Leading People, Results Driven, Business Acumen, and Building Coalitions); be from the past 10 years (5 is better if possible); and be at the executive level. Hosting meetings, arranging for training, implementing someone else’s plan is not typically considered executive. Your examples should demonstrate your strategic thinking and ideally, have enterprise-wide impact.

As you identify your examples, you may find that you have stories that could fit in more than one ECQ. Try to pick the strongest match to the ECQ and that ECQs underlying competencies (for example, the underlying competencies for leading change are: vision, strategic thinking, external awareness, innovation/creativity, flexibility, and resilience).

  • Writing: Once you have your stories identified, you should outline your stories using the required CCAR model. CCAR is the acronym for Challenge-Context-Action-Result. It may even help to write out the parts of the CCAR model and then outline each part of the CCAR with the details. What does CCAR mean and how to use it?

Challenge. Describe a specific problem or goal.

Context. Describe the individuals and groups you worked with, and/or the environment in which you worked, to address a particular challenge (e.g., clients, co-workers, members of Congress, shrinking budget, low morale).

Action. Discuss the specific actions you took to address a challenge.

Result. Give specific examples of measures/outcomes that had some impact on the organization. These accomplishments demonstrate the quality and effectiveness of your leadership skills.

Once you have your outline, then you can start writing. Be sure to focus on your leadership skills and not your technical expertise (save that for the Technical Qualifications) and don’t forget to include the underlying competencies in your essay. Include as many metrics as possible throughout and make sure you can prove your results; it’s not enough to say things are better—you need to show that they are by using a clear before and after metric. You may want to think about including one action for each underlying competency.

  • Reviewing / Editing: Don’t forget to leave time for this. Your ECQ draft should be 10 pages (2 pages for each ECQ). Have someone who does not understand your work review your ECQs (remember, that ECQ reviewers at the Office of Personnel Management level will not be from your agency or likely familiar with your work). Do a “word search” to make sure you have covered all 28 underlying competencies—and put them in the right ECQ. Check spelling and grammar—don’t rely on spell check. And make sure that you have used “I” rather than “we;” the hiring manager and reviewers want to know what you did.

How long does all of this take? SES applicants should expect to spend 40 to 60 hours (or even more!) of solid work to put together a strong set of ECQs. So no, I am sorry, but I cannot get your ECQ written by tomorrow…or even 3 days.

Branding Yourself on LinkedIn

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It’s been over a year since I last wrote about LinkedIn. In that time, LinkedIn has grown even more important—not less. If you are not using LinkedIn to brand yourself to potential employers, you are missing a huge opportunity. And if you haven’t looked at your LinkedIn profile in while, it’s probably past time to do a refresh.

When someone searches for you on LinkedIn, they will see 3 things: Your name, your LinkedIn Headline, and your location. In many cases, hiring managers will make the decision to read your full LinkedIn profile based on just these three things. Consequently, your LinkedIn Headline acts like a newspaper or magazine title. It gives the reader an idea of what your profile will include. Being specific results in a much better headline—but your headline should be more than just your job title. Great headlines attract attention, and the more people who view your LinkedIn profile, the better your chances of connecting with the right person who can lead you to your dream job.

Keywords also play an important part for you in being found by people who don’t know you on LinkedIn — this is particularly true for jobseekers who are hoping for contacts from prospective employers and recruiters. Keywords are a list of words and phrases that are related to your work — they are the words that a prospective employer would search for when trying to find someone like you. LinkedIn Headlines are searchable fields using the “People Search” function when someone is looking for particular skills, interests, qualifications, or credentials.

You can also incorporate keywords throughout your LinkedIn profile, including:

  • Your LinkedIn Headline
  • Current and former work experience
  • LinkedIn summary section
  • Specialties or Skills section

The keywords that you select for your profile must fit two criteria:

  • They must speak to what makes you unique and what you want to be known for.
  • They must align with what employers value — that is, what they want.

Choose your words carefully. When possible, incorporate in keywords — nouns or phrases that can be picked up through online searches and are prominently used in applicant tracking systems.

Although you can create different targeted versions of your résumé to target different types of positions, you’re limited to one LinkedIn profile—so make it count. Be specific and single out the training, experience, and/or results that set you apart. Someone who is reading your profile should be able to recognize YOU in it; if what you wrote could apply to anyone with your job title, go back to the drawing board. You don’t have to come up with anything earth-shattering – but remember that differentiating yourself will help you be found.

A couple of key things that will help you stand out on LinkedIn:

  • Write your Summary in the first person (after all, you’re talking about yourself).
  • Profiles with pictures attract 50-70% more inquiries than profiles without pictures. Have a good headshot of yourself. At a minimum, your photo should include your head and shoulders, not just your face. And remember, no extra arms over your shoulder!

Consider publishing on LinkedIn and commenting on others’ posts to increase your profile and demonstrate your expertise. Offer your opinion and expertise on key issues, dissect obscure (but job-related) topics, and link to other articles and blogs of interest.

Don’t forget to customize your LinkedIn URL (see: https://www.linkedin.com/help/linkedin/answer/87/customizing-your-public-profile-url?lang=en) and include the link on your resume!

Should My Job Search Be Taking This Long?

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Starting out a new job search is a huge step in any career — whether you’re trying to switch to a new industry completely, or are searching for a new opportunity in a field you’re already established in. There’s no set standard of time that a job search can take, which can leave room for a lot of frustration and bewilderment — like a never-ending uphill battle — especially if you’ve already been on the hunt for a while. So, if you’re looking for a new position, career, or industry, it is important to have realistic expectations on how long it will take.

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How to Find Key Words to Use in Your Resume

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While USAJOBS is not a traditional Applicant Tracking Software (ATS) system like most of the private sector uses, key words are still important. Whether you are applying for a position in the private, nonprofit, or government sectors, being able to identify and use key words is an essential skill. And it’s important not just to identify those key words, but also to use them in your resume.

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Your Resume Should NOT Use the Word “I” … and other tricks of the trade—

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I often receive feedback from clients about the resumes I have prepared for them; one of consistent comments I receive is about the word “I.” While resumes should not be written in third person (who likes the “royal we”?), they should not use the word “I” either. Resumes are appropriately written in first person implied. This means that not only should you not use “I,” you should not use other personal pronouns such as me, my, we, our, etc., either.

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